First hearing on the collapse of CS: Karin Keller-Sutter must testify for the PUK

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Now it is becoming more serious to come to terms with the events surrounding the collapse of Credit Suisse. The Parliamentary Investigative Committee (PUK) will begin its first interviews next week. So far, the committee has mainly been concerned with organizational and conceptual preparatory work.

It should start next Thursday. As the SonntagsBlick learned from those close to the PUK, FDP federal councilor Karin Keller-Sutter (59) must appear in person to provide information at the PUK’s first hearing on October 11. She will answer questions about the circumstances surrounding the collapse, rescue and sale of Credit Suisse to UBS. And must provide truthful information. False statements may have criminal consequences.

Keller-Sutter will explain how the discussions between representatives of UBS and Credit Suisse took place and the roles played by the Federal Ministry of Finance (EFD), the Swiss National Bank (SNB) and the Financial Market Supervisory Authority (Finma), which they lead. played.

Finma’s independence

The most important questions: Why was the restructuring of the ailing major bank rejected? Was there really no alternative to selling? Was selling to UBS the only option? Why wasn’t UBS forced to spin off CS Switzerland as an independent entity and later list it on the stock exchange?

A crucial point: how free was Finma in the turbulent days of March? Was there pressure on them to refrain from restructuring? Did EFD or UBS influence the authority to write off the infamous AT1 bonds?

The issue of the independence of the supervisory authority is so important because by law Finma must decide freely. No one should interfere with her when it comes to withdrawing a bank’s license or – as in the case of Credit Suisse – declaring a bank clinically dead and therefore writing down 16 billion francs of debt securities to zero. Only Finma can make this decision and she must make it independently.

Great expectations

The expectations of the PUK are enormous. The final report, which is not expected to be available before summer 2024, aims to provide information on the direction in which future regulation of large banks should go and whether Finma and National Bank specifications should change.

By “waiting for the results of the PUK” necessary decisions are postponed. This is clearly visible at Finma, which is in poor condition. Despite the current personnel chaos at Finma, the EFD wants to wait for the results of the PUK before making a decision on the personality of the controversial president.

But nothing groundbreaking can be expected from the PUK anyway. If you believe well-informed circles, the result will be quite disappointing – similar to the committee of experts appointed by Karin Keller-Sutter. It is to be feared that the end result will be a report that provides hardly any new insights, but only lists a few recommendations for the future regulation of large banks, which are formulated as sympathetically as a school report.

Upon request, the Ministry of Finance would not comment on the appointment of Karin Keller-Sutter. “The PUK’s deliberations are secret, which is why we will not comment further,” a spokeswoman wrote. Commission President Isabelle Chassot (58) also keeps a low profile. In a response to the email, she refers to the obligation of confidentiality, which means that her committee does not answer questions from the media.

Even the meeting location is secret

In general: Isabelle Chassot seems to be very careful that nothing about the work of the PUK comes out. Sometimes she seems to go a little overboard with her discretion. The members of the PUK note with amusement that Chassot himself keeps the location of the meetings secret. The meeting location will only be announced to the PUK members shortly before the start of the meeting.

Information and communication regulations have been drawn up specifically for CS research. The four-page paper regulates exactly what can be communicated and what must remain secret. This was justified by the great media interest. It is said that indiscretions would make the PUK’s job more difficult and could have negative consequences for the Swiss financial center.

There is a comprehensive obligation of confidentiality that is much stricter than in normal everyday political life. This means that “all people who participate in the meetings” are bound by confidentiality, not only the committee members, but also the respondents themselves.

On June 8, the PUK named “Government Management – ​​CS Emergency Merger” was founded. What is documented is that the eight-member committee met on September 7 and adopted the key parameters of the research concept. This means that “the actual investigative work begins in phase 3,” the committee said. The first highlight came with the interrogation of Karin Keller-Sutter on October 11.

* Business journalist Beat Schmid worked for several major media companies during his career. He writes about financial topics in SonntagsBlick.

Source:Blick